New Zealand’s SkyCity Entertainment Group has appointed three new non-executive directors to its Board after receiving all necessary regulatory approvals.
Silvana Schenone, Julian Cook and Chad Barton were all appointed directors as of Tuesday 8 June 2021, having served in an advisory capacity since their appointments were first announced in March.
The trio’s arrival follows a series of changes to the SkyCity Board and senior executive team in recent months, including the retirement of Deputy Chairman Bruce Carter, who has since joined the board of Australia’s Crown Resorts, and the departures of CEO Graeme Stephens, CFO Rob Hamilton and CMO Liza McNally.
SkyCity said in March that its new directors bring with them significant experience, with Schenone a corporate partner at MinterEllisonRuddWatts in Auckland where she leads the firm’s Corporate division. She is also a one of 10 founding members of women’s online collective OnBeingBold, a Board member of the New Zealand Takeovers Panel and holds a Master of Laws from Harvard University.
Cook is the outgoing CEO of Summerset Group Holdings Limited and was a former Associate Director at Macquarie Group.
Barton is described as having extensive experience across finance, capital markets, mergers, acquisitions and property development and brings prior experience with a gaming firm as a former CFO for Australia’s Star Entertainment Group from 2014 to 2019. He was also CFO of Electronic Data Systems and helped establish Women in Gaming & Hospitality Australasia which aims to achieve gender equity and support the development and success of women in the gaming industry.